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Carrollton, Texas
Inside Carrollton's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 65% of mapped land, higher than 70% of Texas cities. A shallow water table limits basements on 8%, the highest of 33 cities in Denton County.
That clay share is above Denton County's 50%. FEMA's flood data list 26 flood losses since 2016 in the 3 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 54,365 homes, 26% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1988.
Data as of September 22, 2026 · sources · in Denton County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 3 overlapping ZIPs
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Carrollton city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 65.4% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 8.3% |
| Septic fields very limited | 83.1% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 11.2% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 63.2% |
| Urban land, not rated | 6.7% |
| Mapped soil | 23,925 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Houston Black | 13% | 91% |
| Heiden | 13% | 80% |
| Trinity | 10% | n/a |
| Branyon | 10% | 92% |
| Ovan | 8% | n/a |
| Ferris | 6% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 11.2% by land area here, and 63% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 65% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of Denton County is in drought on the latest map, and 65% of Carrollton's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
USDA rates 83% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Denton County
100% of Denton County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the September 22, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Carrollton. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75006 | 46% | 15 | $121,605 |
| 75007 | 32% | 10 | $112,663 |
| 75010 | 18% | 1 | $1,909 |
Homes in Carrollton
| Housing units | 54,365 |
| Median year built | 1988 |
| Built before 1980 | 26% |
| Built 2000 or later | 30% |
| Owner-occupied | 59% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $381,000 |
| Single-family detached | 58% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hebron | 4 mi | 66% | 0% |
| Addison | 4 mi | 28% | under 1% |
| Farmers Branch | 4 mi | 45% | 3% |
| Coppell | 6 mi | 58% | 11% |
| Lewisville | 6 mi | 49% | 4% |
| The Colony | 7 mi | 68% | 0% |
| Plano | 10 mi | 75% | under 1% |
| Irving | 10 mi | 65% | 10% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (September 22, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status